Childhood Zing
by MonsterellaMarmalade
Summary: Mavis, livid about Dennis's close brush with death, moves away with Dennis before his fifth birthday and severs all ties with her father. Now that he's 18, Dennis calls his mother on a promise she's made him: To go back and visit everyone in Transylvania.
1. Prologue

"Give me my son." Each word spoken from Mavis's lips fell like another nail in a coffin.

"We just went out for some Avocado!" Dracula cried but the lie just sharpened Mavis's glare.

"Mommy! I flew!" Dennis cried, not reading the situation, or really knowing anything wrong had happened.

"I saw," Mavis said darkly, and she held up her phone, which was playing a remixed video of Dennis falling and her father calling her nuts. Blobby was dancing beside them, but Mavis and Dracula's eyes were locked on each other, and she could see her father sinking into shame and sadness. Dennis ran to his mother and they hugged before she looked up at her father. "I was worried Dennis wasn't safe around other monsters. Now I don't even feel like he's safe around _you_."

"But I was just-"

"What was it you said? Human, monster, Unicorn? That it didn't matter?"

"But I just know his life would-"

"His life?" Mavis asked, her anger finally showing through her voice. "Because of your obsession with turning him into a monster he almost _lost_ his life." Drac swallowed hard, at a loss for words. "I trusted you with him and you went behind my back and nearly _killed_ my son." She stared at him until he looked away. "You may have let humans into your hotel, Dad, but I don't think you've let them into your heart. This isn't the place for him. We're leaving immediately. Johnny can stay behind and pack up some stuff, but I'm taking Dennis to California immediately, far away from _you_."

"Please Mavey...Don't leave?" He reached for her but Mavis just looked away before bending down and picking up Dennis, carrying him away, leaving Dracula to watch them and Johnny to sadly follow behind her.

"Mavis, I really don't think we should leave," Johnny said when they were back in their room, watching his wife move through the room angrily packing her stuff in the backpack her dad had gotten her when they went on their trip around the world.

"Johnny are you _kidding_ me? Dennis isn't _safe_ here," Mavis said turning around and looking at him.

"Your dad caught him, he didn't get hurt, and he seems to have actually _enjoyed_ himself!"

"That doesn't matter! Dennis _isn't_ a monster, and if he'd held onto his hope that he was going to fly for another second he would have _died_!"

"This place is his _home_ Mavis," Johnny said shaking his head. "He won't be happy where I grew up!"

"He's never _been_ there!"

"But he likes it _here_! You're the only one who has a problem with it!"

"Because I'm the only one who seems to care that he's safe!"

"I care! But you can't keep him safe from everything Mavis. Even in my town he'll get hurt. That's part of growing up."

"Well at least where you lived it'll be human problems. He'll be around people like him. Not monsters. Johnny we're moving. Even _you_ can't deny that that was too close."

She was right, and Johnny knew that. His eyes dulled the way they always did when he was giving up the fight. "Alright, what do you want me to pack?"

"I'm going to pack Dennis and I a suitcase of clothes, you pack up the bigger stuff...pictures, the rest of the clothes, his toys and everything."

Johnny nodded, defeatedly, and walked off leaving Mavis to sit down on the bed with a huff hiding her face in her hands.

"Mommy?" Dennis's little voice sounded by her and she jumped as she looked at him.

"What is it baby?"

"Are we leaving cebuse I'm not a monster?"

Mavis felt her heart twist, but she knew this was the best option for her son. "No, no of course not. It's just...Grown up stuff."

"What about Papa Drac?"

"Papa Drac has to stay here to run the hotel."

"Will we visit? And call him _every_ night?"

Mavis hesitated, she was beyond angry with her father. "We'll see baby. Come on, let's get you packed." She stood and took his hand, leading the way to his room to pack him some clothes and his favorite toys. Before the sun had set, they were gone, on a plane to Santa Clause, California. Their new home.


	2. Chapter 1

13 years later

Beep beep beep beep! Dennis groaned as he rolled over and slammed his hand down on his alarm clock which, if the glowing numbers meant anything, it was after 9 PM. He yawned as he sat up and stretched before going to get dressed. He showered quickly, brushing out his unruly red curly hair and brushed his teeth, paying careful attention to his fangs.

It had been on the night of his fifth birthday that he'd actually gotten them, he'd been demanding why Papa Drac hadn't come to see him for his birthday, and his mother, reaching her limit, had finally yelled he hadn't been invited, and never would be again. For some reason, rather than make him sad, Dennis had gotten livid, and his fangs grew in the one and only time he could remember shouting down his mother. He felt awful about it later, though not enough to ask if they could go back to Transylvania now that he had his fangs. But his mother had refused. Looking back on it now, he wasn't sure it was ever because of him that they'd left. He was convinced she just wanted to get out from under her father's thumb and he'd finally been the perfect reason to do it.

In the years since, he'd not seen his grandfather once. Though he'd spoken to him a few times on Dennis's birthday, it was never on video chat. His mother said it was to conserve battery life, or to keep the bill lower, but he knew she just didn't want him to see his fangs. To know he really was a monster. In fact they had not spoken to anyone from there. Not Uncle Frank, Aunt Eunice, or Uncle Wayne, or Aunt Wanda. It was just more proof to Dennis that this was all because of his fangs rather than anything else his mother could say it was.

His grandfather also hadn't seen his younger sister. In fact, he didn't even know about her. Allison was only eight, ten years younger than him and completely unexpected. Her looks took after his mothers though her black hair had one bright red streak running down the left side and she had their father's brown eyes. Unlike her brother, the fact that she was a vampire was never questioned. She was fanged and climbing walls by the time she was two, driving his grandpa Mike and Grandma Linda crazy. Dennis just found it funny, and had even been grateful since it was because of her that they finally got their own house. It had been mainly him that taught Allison how to fly and be a vampire while his parents worked.

He pulled himself from the past and shook his head as he dumped copious amounts of hair gel in his hands and did his best to tame the wild beast that was his hair. Once it was styled in careful disarray rather than the awful mop it usually was, and he was dressed, he inhaled deeply through his nose and opened the bathroom door to head downstairs. The second it was open, however, a small brown eyed bat dropped on his head.

"Hello Ally," He mumbled as he picked his little sister off his head.

"Happy birthday Dennis!" She squeaked as she shifted back into a person in a puff of purple smoke and he let her go so she dropped on her feet.

He smiled at her and ruffled her hair. It was his birthday. His 18th birthday. A big one, and one he'd been waiting for for years. "Thanks, where's Mom and Dad?"

"Mom's in the kitchen, she said you're not allowed to know what she's doing."

"Making a cake? Like always?" He offered and Allison's sly smile told him he was right. "Well unfortunately for her I have to talk to her so..." He trailed off and smiled. "Race you downstairs." Before she could really comprehend what he said, he'd shifted into a bat with a mop of curly red hair in a puff of green smoke and flew downstairs. She was right on his tail though, and he only beat her to the kitchen by a hair. She pouted as they shifted back.

"No fair! You got a head start!"

"My birthday my rules," He replied and laughed when she just stuck her tongue out at him.

Mavis looked up as her children entered the kitchen and playfully glared at Dennis. "Didn't Allison tell you not to come down here?" She asked, trying to sound angry, but it was obvious she was just pretending.

"Yeah...but I need to talk to you."

Mavis immediately tensed. "What's wrong Dennis?"

He stared at her, he could tell she knew what he wanted. "You promised," Was all he said instead of the big speech he'd practiced all last night. "You promised when I turned 18 I could go back to see Papa Drac in person."

She sighed and put down the frosting. "I told you I don't want you going back there. It's not safe."

"It was safe enough for you for over 120 years!" He countered getting upset, though he quickly reigned it back in and calmed himself down. After a moment he resumed speaking in his usual gentle manner. "I haven't seen him in forever, He doesn't even know about Allison."

"He almost killed you when you were four," She replied quietly.

"But I didn't die, and since then I've gotten my fangs. I've learned everything I need to. Stop pretending this is all about my safety. After all this time, there's no way that's it. I figured that out years ago. I'm officially an adult and you can't stop me...but I'd like it if you came with me."

Mavis blinked as she looked at him, that wasn't something she expected. She figured he, like her, would want to get away from her as she'd wanted to get away from her father.

"But...Allison..."

"Ally will be fine. Come on Mom. You know Dad misses it too."

Mavis floundered for a reason to say no before she sighed, accepting her fate. "Ask your father. He's in the garage."

Dennis had to suppress a triumphant grin as he turned and headed to find his father. He knew he'd already won. His father would never deny him especially once he told him Mavis had okayed it.

Johnny was in the garage, fixing the bike Dennis had gotten for his 15th birthday. It wasn't a very expensive bike, but Dennis loved it, and he rode it every day, up until he wrecked in at the skate park a few months previous wiping out on a trick that would've been spectacular. "Hey dad," He said as he walked in and leaned against a wall.

Johnny looked up and grinned. "Hey Dennis. Here to help me out on your birthday?"

"As fun as that sounds, no. Mom told me to ask you something."

"Hmm?" He asked standing up and wiping his greasy hands on his pants.

"Can we all go to Visit Papa Drac."

Johnny's eyes about popped out of his head. "Your mom asked you to ask me? The decision is mine?" He clarified and once Dennis nodded, Johnny grinned wide. "Heck yeah! Let's go! I miss that place."

He laughed at his father's reaction, even though he'd known that would be it. His father just made him laugh in general. Dennis could tell, when he told his mom, that she really wasn't happy, like she expected Johnny to say no just because he knew she didn't really want to go. But he hadn't, and she'd run out of excuses. So just twenty four hours later, Dennis and his family were on a flight back to Transylvania, the home he'd not seen since he was about to turn five. He couldn't wait.


	3. Chapter 2

"I really think we should've called first Mom," Dennis said as they sat in the cab heading for the hotel. "It's the polite thing to do."

"Dad will be fine with us just dropping in," She said, staring out the window and very obviously trying to keep a grumpy look off her face. She really wasn't happy about this, she didn't want to come back here. Dennis could see that no matter how much she tried to hide it.

"Uh... Ma'am?" The cab driver said looking in his mirror at her. "Are you sure you got this address right?"

"Yes," She said in a final tone that kept the cabbie from disclosing whatever made him so hesitant. Johnny and Dennis shared a look before they all settled back, looking out the window.

"Is the hotel big?" Allison asked after a few moments of silence.

"It's enormous," Dennis said smiling as he turned his attention to her. "Think of the biggest building you can, and imagine it at least three times." Her eyes grew almost comically wide in awe, pulling a chuckle from Dennis and Johnny.

"It's not that big," Mavis said, wiping the smiles off everyone's face. Dennis sighed. He remembered when his mother was full of wonder and life, and it seemed like she'd lost that ever since they moved. He felt a bit bad that Allison had never seen that side of her. It had been one of his favorite things, seeing her get as excited about stuff as he did.

"It'll be big to her, Hon," Johnny said gently and Mavis just shrugged.

After looking between them for a moment, Dennis looked back at Allison. "Anything else you want to know?" He asked her, smiling encouragingly.

"What kind of monsters are there?"

"All kinds, There's Frankenstein from the movies, We call him uncle Frank. And his wife, Aunt Eunice. There's an invisible man named Griffin, a mummy named Murray. Oh Blobby was one of my personal favorites, all green and goopy. There's a picture of them all from Mom and Dad's wedding I think you've seen."

She nodded. "Anything else?"

"Well there are fish monsters, Bigfoot hangs out there a lot, there are gremlins and spiders, witches and...Werewolves," He said pausing a bit as a pang went through him. He remembered the werewolves best of all. His best friend Winnie was a werewolf, though he was a bit nervous about seeing her again. He was scared she wouldn't remember him. It had been so long and they were both so young.

"Werewolves?" Ally asked, curiously. She'd had a fascination with werewolves since she was little.

Dennis cleared his throat. "Uh, yeah, Werewolves. That'd be Uncle Wayne and Aunt Wanda and their kids," He said looking at her.

"They have kids?" She asked her eyes shining, she'd not been around many monsters her own age.

"Yeah. I'm sure there's at least a few around your age. They had over 300 kids when I was here and Aunt Wanda was pregnant again...she seems to be constantly pregnant."

"You're exacerbating." Dennis snickered, he loved how Allison tried to use big words, and generally got them mixed up.

"Exaggerating," Dennis corrected. "And no, I'm not. Cross my heart."

"Holy rabies," She said slowly as she sat back, clearly trying to process this information.

"Alright," The cabbie said as he slowed to a stop. "Here we are."

Dennis, Allison, and Johnny all grinned while Mavis took a deep breath, trying to get herself prepared for seeing her father. His dad opened the door and stepped out, closely followed by Dennis, Allison, and Mavis brought up the rear. They were all chatting excitedly about what they'd see when Johnny suddenly stopped short. Dennis crashed into his back. "Dad? What's wrong?" Johnny didn't answer he just stood there staring open mouthed. Dennis stepped around him and looked up at the doors and gaped too. Hanging across the front entrance was a giant, elegantly painted sign.

CLOSED FOREVER


	4. Chapter 3

They all gaped open mouthed at the sign on the door and then Johnny turned around where the cabbie was still sitting. "What happened?"

"This place closed down years ago. Dracula shut it down packed up and left."

"That's...not possible, this place was his entire life," Mavis said staring at the man.

"Well I heard he fell into a deep depression after his kid left. He kept it open for a while, hoping she'd come back. When she didn't he closed up shop and took off."

Mavis stared at him and then looked at Johnny.

"Any idea where he went?" Johnny asked.

"No, not for sure. I heard many things, staying with Frankenstein, Or the Werewolves that were always around here. Maybe with the mummy. But no one really knows for sure. After the hotel closed they all dispersed back to where they lived before their existence was revealed to us. And Count Dracula just disappeared. Either way he's not around here anymore. Is there another hotel you want to stay?"

Mavis shook her head firmly. "No. Thank you," She said before she turned and walked over to the doors of Hotel Transylvania.

"Ma'am I really don't think anyone's allowed in there."

"Considering my father ran this place, _I_ am," She said as she pulled the sign down and pushed open the doors. They squeaked loudly, protesting the disturbance in their slumber as they moved, and she disappeared inside.

Johnny paid the man and then immediately went to follow his Wife, Dennis right behind him and Allison only a few seconds behind him.

It was like stepping into the past. The structure of the room, the furniture, everything was exactly how Dennis remembered it. And yet it wasn't. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust. The bright reds that had been a part of the room were dulled with age. There were cobwebs everywhere, and not the artistic kind. On the far wall ivy was growing untamed and everything felt empty.

Dennis was still trying to wrap his head around what he was seeing when a loud squeak echoed from behind him. He jumped and looked around. Allison was closing the door behind her. She saw him looking at her and walked over. "This place looks like it would've been awesome."

"It was. It was amazing," He said softly. "It was immense and impressive. Guests were everywhere and every door had something to do behind it."

"I wish I could've seen it like that," She mumbled.

"Mavey? Mavis?" Johnny asked and they both looked around to see him approaching her where she was standing at the front desk. "Are you okay?"

"It's all my fault," she whispered, her voice thick, and Dennis noticed with a start that she was crying.

"No it's not hon. You did the right thing leaving-"

"But not staying gone," She countered. "All this time I thought he cared enough about the hotel. That it'd keep him happy... I never expected him to leave it."

Johnny was quiet for a moment. "You were wrong Mavis. You said this place was his life, but it wasn't. You were. He loved you."

"I know that."

"Then why'd you stay away for so long? Why didn't we ever come back."

"I...Was embarrassed. I had every right to be angry when Dennis almost died... But once he did get his fangs all my reasons for moving vanished and..."

"And it was more your pride than anything wasn't it?" He asked and she nodded with a sob, hiding her face in her hands. "So you made a mistake. It's alright, everyone does."

"I destroyed him. I let this destroy him. And now I don't even know where he is...to make it right."

Dennis finally spoke up. "Well the cabbie gave us some places to start. Uncle Frank's, Uncle Wayne's, Uncle Murray's. If we track him down... you could apologize," He offered. She was quiet for a long time before she finally nodded.

"Okay. Yes. That makes sense."

"Alright...so... where does Uncle Frank live? We can just fly there rather than call the cabbie back."

"I uhhh...I don't know," She admitted. "I wasn't allowed to leave the hotel, they came to visit me and then when our existence was revealed they moved in. I never got to see their place."

"Well this is a hotel, I'm sure their old information is here somewhere. We'll just have to see if there's files anywhere."

"Didn't you make Dad put everything on computer, Johnny?" Mavis asked looking at the old, dusty, and broken computers. Even if Dennis thought one of them could work, he'd never risk turning it on.

"Do you really think he listened to me?" Johnny replied smiling and Mavis chuckled a bit wetly as she wiped at her eyes.

"Fair enough," She sniffled. "The record room was downstairs. Come on."

They all followed after her as she lead the way to the record room. The door squeaked louder than the front one did when she pushed it open and she light a candle to help Johnny see. "Alright. It should all be alphabetized," She said heading over to the F's. "Johnny you get uncle Murray's? And Dennis you look for Uncle Wayne and Aunt Wanda's?"

Dennis nodded. "Come on Ally, come help me look," He said as he headed through the rows of filing cabinets, looking for the W's. When he found one he pulled it open. "Hmm... Waldgeist, Wana-games-ak, Wani," He said flipping through ones in the top drawer while Ally opened the middle one.

"W...we...Wen...Wendigo... What's a wendigo?" She asked.

"It's a cannibalistic monster that craves human flesh."

"Gross!" She said shuddering as she quickly moved past them.

"Well there's human flesh substitutes, just like we have blood substitutes. They don't kill anyone anymore."

"Still gross," She said. "Werewolf, Wayne! Found it!" She said pulling out a thick file.

"Nice work Ally," He said taking it as he closed the top drawer and took the file from her. He opened it and quickly realized it was so thick because Papa Drac had kept notes on all their children too. He chuckled and motioned for her to close the drawer before going to find their parents again.

"Ally found Uncle Wayne and Aunt Wanda, They live in Greece," He said.

"Uncle Frank and Aunt Eunice live in Germany."

"No surprise here, Murray lives in Egypt," Johnny added as he walked out holding his own file.

"Where should we try first?" Dennis asked.

"Greece is the closest," Mavis said nodding at the novel sized file in his hand and he felt a rush of adrenaline hit his system. Greece would be where Winnie was. He couldn't wait to see her. He nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah. Yeah let's go. They live," He opened the file to check again. "Near the forests of Kosmas."

After a bit more discussing they were on their way, three bats, with the largest one carrying Johnny, flying towards Greece and one with an extra light heart, and some extra passengers of butterflies in his stomach. After all this time, after 13 years, he was finally going to see his best friend. He was so excited and yet a little nervous. What if she didn't remember him? What if she was mad at him? He hadn't had a chance for little more than a goodbye before his mother had whisked him away. What if she blamed him? It wasn't his fault, but as a kid it would be easy to be mad at him. They'd been so close and he'd just left. He did his best to push those thoughts aside though and just let his excitement fill his body. He really did miss her.


	5. Chapter 4

The flight to Greece was quicker than it would have been if they got on a plane, but it was still the furthest Dennis and Allison had flown. And by the time they'd reached the border of the country, they'd needed to land and take a rest. Mavis offered to get plane tickets for the rest of the way, but they'd come so far that both of them refused and the rest of the flight continued without an issue.

Just over an hour later, they spotted the small village of Kosmas and flew for the forests. It didn't take long for them to find their house and they all landed lightly outside the front door. Johnny raised his fist to knock.

"Johnny no!" Mavis said, but it was too late. He brought his fist down, rapping hard on the door once before her words made him freeze. Immediately from inside was the chorus of hundreds of werewolf children barking and howling and racing for the front door to see who it was.

"Hey! Get back. Get back!" They could hear Uncle Wayne's voice fighting through his children to get to the front door. He opened it still forcing the pups back but he froze when he saw just who was at the door and the front yard was quickly flooded with them. The boys raced around them all and Dennis smiled as they sniffed at everyone, though Allison was quickly the focus of a few of the older boys, the ones around her age.

"Hi Uncle Wayne," Mavis said hesitantly offering him a little smile.

"Mavis!" He said reaching out for a hug. "Long time no see kiddo!" He pulled back. "Johnny! Dennis! Oh, and who's this little cutie," He said looking down at Allison who'd been forced behind Dennis's legs by the incessant sniffing of the werewolf boys. "Hey, hey! Back off leave her alone," He said pulling out his wife's trusty squirt bottle and hitting them all with it. They barked and ran off and Uncle Wayne grinned at her. "What's your name?"

"Allison," She said, a bit shyly, which was unusual for her. She was a very confident child and Dennis touched her hair gently.

Uncle Wayne smiled. "Well it's nice to meet you. It's nice to see all of you," he added looking at them all. "Come in come in!" He stepped back and gestured them inside. They piled in and the pups followed after them, still sniffing at their ankles. It was hard to walk but Uncle Wayne just pushed through and so did they. Dennis looked around to see some of the older wolves he knew.

Wanye and Wally were both leaning against a wall and they waved when he walked in. Wilson was in the corner, reading a book and didn't seem to notice. Waylon and Weepy called out hellos but were too engrossed in a video game to actually come say hi. But look as he might, Dennis could not find Winnie. He sighed as they headed to the kitchen where Aunt Wanda was cooking.

"Dear look who's here," Uncle Wayne said. Aunt Wanda looked around and dropped the pan she was holding. "Mavis! Honey oh how've you been?" She said rushing over and hugging her. "Oh Johnny and Dennis too! And... Oh hello. Who are you?" She asked smiling gently at Allison.

"I'm Allison," She said a bit more confidently as she looked at Aunt Wanda. She grinned and hugged her gently.

"Nice to meet you, Honey. Well this is a surprise. What brought this on?" She asked as she stood and looked at Mavis.

Mavis took a deep breath and glanced at Johnny and then Dennis before continuing. "Dennis's 18th birthday was yesterday. And I told him he could come visit at 18. He invited the rest of us along. We went to the hotel but it was closed..." She trailed off as Uncle Wayne and Aunt Wanda shared knowing looks. "What happened?"

"Well," Aunt Wanda started. "Mavis, honey, no one blames you, but your dad... He just wasn't the same after you guys left. He didn't really do anything to maintain the hotel. In fact he barely left his room. After a few years of us seeing him less and less, and Wayne, Frank, Griffin, and Murray trying to keep the place going, he came downstairs one day and announced the hotel would be closing that weekend and everyone better pack up and cancel the remaining reservations." Mavis bit her lip, and Dennis knew why. It seemed a lot like it was her fault.

"We all tried to talk him out of it," Uncle Wayne interjected. "But you know your dad, he was set on leaving. We offered to try and keep the place going, but he refused. And we'd noticed a steady decline as he was seen less and less. If he was actually gone the place was as good as dead anyway. So we did as he asked. Then that Sunday, as he'd promised, he locked the doors and kept anyone from coming back in. He was there for a few months after the place closed down, we all kept trying to change his mind, visiting him in our own time, together, separately, but one day I went there and he was just gone. I don't know where he is."

Mavis rubbed her face. "So it is all my fault."

"Oh no! Mavis, Honey. Your dad... he just needed some time, some space," Aunt Wanda said gently touching her shoulder. "It wasn't you. You did what you had to do, we all knew and respected that. We all thought his insistence at making Dennis a vampire wasn't a good idea. I would have left too."

"But would you have stayed gone if he'd become a vampire?" She asked quietly and they both tilted their heads in confusion before looking at Dennis. After a moment he opened his mouth, showing his fangs and their eyebrows shot up.

"Oh... Well... No," Aunt Wanda answered truthfully. "But that still doesn't make it your fault. You're not responsible for his actions. You are responsible for your children. You had every right to be angry." Dennis sighed, he knew she was trying to make his mom feel better, but all her answers felt paper thin to him.

As he sighed there was a gasp from behind him, he turned to look but before he knew what was happening something furry hit him at full force and he went flying, the breath getting knocked out of him. He landed with an oof and looked up to see a very familiar furry face with bright blue eyes and sharp teeth in an excited smile.

"Dennis! It's been so long!" Winnie said excitedly and Dennis grinned back.

"Hi Winnie." As he stared into her eyes he suddenly felt a sense of rightness, something he'd not felt since he was a child. She licked happily at his face and hopped up, holding her hand out to him. He took it and pulled himself up still staring at her, drinking her in. She'd grown up a lot of course, as one would do in thirteen years. She had a slender frame, unlike her mother's constantly pregnant look. She was pear shaped with muscular legs and a decent chest. Her hair was longer now, but still held in her usual low pigtails and her snout was a bit longer. She wore a dress, similar to the long shirt she'd worn though their childhood. Though this one was a deep red and fell to just a few inches above the knee. It had a black rose on the front and a small pattern of skulls and paw prints dotting the hem. After a few moments he realized that it had grown silent and both he and Winnie looked around to see everyone staring at them.

"What?" They both asked at the same time. Everyone muttered something to the extent of "nothing" and looked away. Dennis shook his head and turned his attention back to Winnie.

"What're you doing here?" She asked him

"Mom promised on my 18th birthday I could come back to see everyone. We stopped by the hotel first, but it was closed." Winnie nodded sadly.

"It's been closed for a while. I was worried I'd never see you again. I knew you'd go back there, but I wasn't sure you'd keep looking."

"Well of course I would. You're my best friend, Winnie."

"Even after all this time?" She asked with a smile, and he nodded.

"Of course." He was about to say more but some movement at his elbow distracted him and he looked down to see a little wolf holding on to the edge of Winnie's dress. He blinked a million thoughts going through his head but before his imagination could run away with him, she was speaking.

"This is my one and only Sister, Willa."

"Sister? Oh so you're not the only girl anymore?" he asked grinning.

"Nope, thank god. Though it is just the two of us. We stick together." Dennis smiled as he looked down at her. She was pretty tall, but she looked to be around 8 or 9. Winnie had been his height when he was four and she was nine, so Willa was definitely tall for her age. She had soft looking gray fur and her hair was long, falling to her shoulder blades and slicked back. Her eyes were a bright yellow and her ears, like her elder sister's were both pierced.

"...need to find him," Mavis was saying as Dennis tuned back in and he turned to look at her. "I need to apologize Uncle Wayne. I didn't want to hurt him..."

Uncle Wayne was quiet as he looked at her. "I don't know where he went Mavis... But I will help you look. We'll find him." Mavis smiled a bit and nodded.

"Thanks uncle Wayne."

"No problem Kiddo. Now where have you been already?" He asked.

"Besides the hotel you're the first place we stopped. We got Uncle Murray and Uncle Frank's addresses from the record room too, but you were closest, and since we were flying I figured that'd be best."

Wayne nodded. "What about Griffin? Or Blobby?"

"I couldn't find Uncle Griffin's, and Blobby's just listed the hotel," She said shaking her head. "Apparently Dad didn't keep up the records when everyone left and...I don't know what happened to Uncle Griffin's."

"Well It's not much to go on, I doubt he's with any of the old gang. I think they would've told us. But we've fallen out of touch since the hotel closed down so anything's possible. And at the very least we'll get to see all of them. Where were you planning on going next?"

"Well Murray's is closest to yours. We were going to fly there again, but if you're coming we should probably book a flight."

"I'm coming too," Winnie informed them.

"Me too!" Willa piped up immediately after.

"Winnie, Willa, your mom needs help with the boys." Winnie rolled her eyes.

"Mom's fine, she always is." Wayne deflated and Dennis could tell that he'd been looking forward to some time completely away from his kids.

"She's right, Wayne, I'm fine," Wanda said and he deflated more.

"Alright," He said after a long silence, he clearly couldn't find a reason they couldn't. "We'll look for a flight while you two go pack." Winnie and Willa ran off and Dennis looked after them before following Uncle Wayne to their computer to help him book a flight.


	6. Chapter 5

**((I am so sorry about the lack of updates to this story. I was having an awful time and couldn't force myself to write anything. BUT! This story is not dead and I have every intention of finishing it. Thank you for all your support!))**

 _Why do I feel so warm?_ Dennis asked himself for the thirteenth time as he settled into his seat next to Winnie. Her arm brushed his and a tingle shot through it making his already red cheeks even darker. He quickly rubbed at his face and tried to calm his racing heart. It was ridiculous, and yet it wasn't. He remembered feeling this way around her even as a small child, and she'd only gotten more attractive in the years they'd been apart. He'd caught himself sneaking glances at her the entire way there, and not innocent friend glances, though he tried to be respectful, his mind was going to places it hadn't before with anyone else. And sometimes, when she'd caught him looking at her, there was a flash in her eyes that made him think her mind was there too. Or maybe it was just wishful thinking.

The take off went smoothly and Dennis glanced around to make sure Allison was doing okay. She'd always had a bit of a fear of airplanes and this was the first flight where she wasn't sitting next to him. He saw her two rows back, sitting next to Willa and Wayne, chatting animatedly to her new friend and it made him smile. Back at the house she'd been so nervous to even look at her until Dennis had told her to. And even then she'd been hesitant. But the second she'd said hello to her they'd become inseparable. Though it had been odd, as he'd watched them meet each others eyes he swore he saw them flash purple. Something he vaguely remembered from his own childhood, his first memory of Winnie's face had her eyes flashing purple too. After thinking on it though, he was sure it was a trick of the light, and his memory getting confused. His sister's eyes were definitely brown, and Winnie's were blue. But he was glad she had a friend and that apparently she was comfortable enough to be talking like she was on a plane.

"So what have you been up to?" Winnie suddenly asked, pulling Dennis from his thoughts and he turned around to face her.

"What?" He asked automatically. "Oh. Uh... Not much."

She quirked an eyebrow at him. "Not much... In thirteen years, you've done nothing?" She asked smirking.

His blush that had just faded came back in full force. "Well I mean I'm not sure must of it's that interesting," he said.

"Let me decide that for myself."

"Uhh well alright," He said. "Where do you want me to start?"

"At the beginning, I guess. When did you get your fangs?"

"On my fifth birthday," He informed her. "I got really angry with my mom because Grandpa Vlad wasn't at my party. She didn't invite him. And that made me really angry. I grew my fangs instantly."

"Oh... Then why didn't you come back?" She asked and he could tell she was trying to not sound hurt, which sent a pang through him.

"I tried to, I asked her a few days later if we could go home now that I was a vampire. She said no."

"Why?

"She never really gave me a reason, and I still felt so bad about shouting at her on my birthday. So I didn't press the issue. I wish I had. Because the more I thought about it the more I came to the realization that I don't think we ever left because of me."

"What do you mean?"

"We went to California supposedly fearing that I wasn't safe around monsters. But I became a monster, and she didn't take us back to Transylvania. She'd let Papa Drac call me on my birthday but never let us face time it, and the calls stopped when my obviously vampiric baby sister was born." Winnie just blinked at him, not understanding the conclusion he reached. "I don't think it was about me at all. I think Mom really wanted to get out from under Papa Drac's thumb. He was still smothering her even though she was a married mother, and she used what happened to me to just make it happen."

"Do you really think she'd do that?" She asked, sounding a bit dubious.

"I do. I think it was originally about me, of course. But once her reason was taken away, a mixture of pride and wanting to be away from him kept her away."

"But she loved her father."

"She still does. But she even admitted it at the hotel. It was mainly her pride that kept her away," He said shrugging.

"Oh. Well alright then what about school?"

"I was a straight A student. I went to a night school they had for monsters like me."

"Friends?"

"Yeah I had many friends," He said about to go into more detail but she cut him off with a new edge to her voice.

"Girlfriends?" He blinked his words about his friends dying in his throat. The way she was looking at him and the way she spoke made him feel like there was a wrong answer to this question. But he wasn't entirely sure which answer was wrong, plus he didn't like to lie so he told the truth.

"No. I've...not seen anyone I've wanted in that way..." He watched as she relaxed and then immediately tensed again.

"Ever?" She asked her voice strangely soft. He blushed a bit but once again didn't lie.

"Well...Not ever," he admitted, looking at her.

She smiled a bit and relaxed again. "What about hobbies and stuff?"

"I like to bike, I hang out at the skate park with my friends all the time, I go riding pretty much every day. Well I did, until I wrecked my bike."

"How'd you wreck it?"

"I was doing a trick and I landed wrong," he said shrugging. "I was fine, but I banged up the bike pretty good, bent one of the wheels and stuff so."

"Why didn't you use your powers to stop yourself?" She asked and he blushed yet again, though this time it was for a very different reason.

"The adrenaline...I forgot I had them okay?" He said looking away as she burst out laughing.

"I'm sorry," She gasped as she held her sides. "It's just... so ridiculous, how do you forget you have powers?"

Dennis blushed even darker. "Yeah that's what Allison said too," he mumbled.

Winnie took a moment to compose herself. "I'm sorry," She said wiping her eyes with a clawed hand. "That's just...so ridiculous."

"So you said," He said hiding his face in his hands.

"Hey," She said reaching over and gently pulling his hands away. She waited until he looked at her before continuing. "Don't be embarrassed. It's cute." Her hand gently caressed his cheek and his mouth was suddenly dry. He was lost in her impossibly blue eyes and he felt himself leaning closer before the other man in their row coughed violently and they both jumped back like they'd been caught doing something wrong.

There was an almost awkward silence before Dennis turned back to Winnie. "So what about you?" He asked her gently. "I see you have a new sister and six hundred brothers now."

Winnie smiled. "Yeah, Willa finally made it so I wasn't the only girl. The boys are all terrified of us, but she's really shy and sweet. It doesn't matter what any of them do to her she won't raise a paw to them. Of course they know if they mess with her I'll rip them to pieces." Dennis laughed though he knew it wasn't a joke. She would, he'd seen her do it when they got too rough with him when he was little.

"What about school? I remember you saying you wanted to go to business school and run a company."

"Oh, well that had to be put on hold for a while. Mom really needs my help with the boys, and I need to make sure Willa will stand up for herself before I go."

"But have you found anywhere you want to go?"

"Well...I...was looking into some over in California," She admitted glancing at him and he smiled a warmth settling in his chest.

"Near me," He added quietly.

"I missed you Dennis. I wanted my best friend back. Plus there are some pretty good schools out there," She said almost sounding a bit defensive and he just grinned.

"Well I missed you too. I would've been glad if you came out to California." They fell silent for another minute before he turned back to her. "So what about friends?"

She burst out laughing, her sharp teeth glinting in the dim light of the plane. "Friends? With my brothers? Are you mad? You're the only person they ever failed to scare off."

"So I guess that means no boyfriends for you then?" He said suddenly realizing why there had been a wrong answer. He couldn't fault her if she'd been with someone, but he certainly wouldn't like it.

"Hell no. None of those either," She said smirking at him. "I have a feeling they would've gotten eaten, by my brothers if not my dad."

Dennis let out a breath he hadn't been aware he was holding and laughed a bit. "Yeah...probably. But you could've protected them. No one in your family would dare go against you."

She grinned wider. "Damn right."

They talked for the rest of the plane ride, filling each other in on everything and anything they'd been up to and by the time they landed it almost felt like no time had passed. Like they had never lost contact.

They made it through security and customs and eventually out into the sweltering heat of Egypt.

"Alright, how are we going to get to Murray's?" Dennis asked looking around at everyone.

"Umm...by cab?" Allison said quirking an eyebrow at her brother and gesturing to one of the many taxi's that were just waiting by the curb. Dennis blushed as everyone laughed and then they all piled into a cab, Johnny giving the driver the name of Murray's tomb.

They were there in almost no time at all, or maybe it just felt like that to Dennis who was once again deep in conversation with Winnie, because when they got out of the cab everyone was stretching and groaning like they'd been in there for hours. Dennis turned to look up at it and his eyes widened. The place was huge.

"Well, lets head in," He said starting the walk up to the entrance. There was plenty of caution tape and a sign for no entry, but no one paid it any mind. "Uncle Wayne have you been here before?" He asked turning to look at him.

He nodded. "Once hundreds of years ago. I vaguely remember the way." He moved to the front of the group and started leading the way down corridors, following some unmarked path. Everything was fine until Wayne took a wrong step and suddenly everyone heard a click. With lightning reflexes, Willa reached forward and yanked her dad out of the way just as spears protruded from the ground.

Dennis stared open mouthed for a moment. "Wow," He said finally. "Murray sure takes home security seriously."

"Yeah... that wasn't there when I was here, he must have added it in."

"Alright everyone, be on your guard," He said before gesturing to Wayne to continue leading the way. They walked in relative silence now, their eyes on the ground, making sure they weren't triggering something. Twice Dennis almost hit a pressure plate, and Mavis had to yank Johnny back when he almost hit a trip wire, but they were fine until they reached a big room, covered in pressure plates. They physically couldn't walk without stepping on one.

"Well there has to be a correct path through. How do we find it out though?" Johnny said. Dennis pursed his lips, thinking hard. It almost seemed hopeless when Willa happened to glance up.

"Look! The path is marked on the ceiling!" She said pointing it out.

"Nice Will!" Allison said grinning as they all took in the map carved in the stone above them. Once again Wayne went first, and made it through, albeit very slowly. Winnie went next, then Willa, Allison, Mavis, then Dennis and Johnny. They were almost half way across when it happened. Johnny misstepped with a loud click and suddenly there was a vicious rumbling.

"RUN!" Dennis shouted before sprinting to the other edge of the room, his father right on his heels. They just barely made it across before with a loud crack the floor fell away into a spike fall. Dennis stared at it and then over at everyone else. "God dammit."

"My bad," Johnny said trying to play it off but it was obvious he was terrified. Mavis touched his cheek.

"You really have to be more careful Johnnystein," She said smirking and he immediately relaxed.

"I'll work on it Mavey," He promised.

"Not to break this up but we're there," Wayne said pointing out a door.

"Are you sure?" Dennis asked nervously.

He gave him a look but nodded. "I'm sure." He walked over and didn't even bother knocking, he just opened the door and walked in, the rest following behind him. Through the door didn't look anything like the rest of the pyramid. It was furnished like a New York high rise apartment, though there was considerably more yellow than most people would have.

"Hey Murray!" Wayne yelled.

"Wayne! Is that you?" His voice called from a room off to the side. They walked over and found him sitting in a hot tub looking thing, filled with quick sand. He grinned. "Wayne my man! How the hell you been?"

"I've been good, you've not heard the commotion?"

"Oh no I did, I was assuming it was humans trying to raid my crypt. Why didn't you use the friend's entrance?" He asked.

"Friend's entrance?"

"...Did I forget to text you about that?" He asked blinking.

"Well yes, Murray, Apparently. Considering I just came in the long way. You almost killed us."

"Most of those traps are from before we were outed," He said defensively.

"That's not the point," Wayne started before Dennis interrupted them.

"Not that this...isn't fascinating," He said quietly. "But we are here for a reason Uncle Wayne."

"Right... Murray, is Drac here with you?"

"No, I've not seen him since the day he closed the hotel."

"You have no idea where he is?" Mavis asked sounding distressed and for the first time Murray noticed just who was there.

"Mavey! Johnny!" He said climbing out of the hot tub and moving over to give them both a hug. "Wow it's been forever! How have you been?"

"Uncle Murray...My dad?" Mavis said pointedly.

"Oh, Right. No sorry. I haven't seen or heard from him since he sent us all packing."

Mavis made a noise and Johnny gently put his hands on her shoulders. "We'll find him hon, I know we will."

"Yeah, hey, maybe he's at Franks?" Murray offered.

"That's where we were going to try next," Dennis said and Murray blinked.

"Dennis! Wow you've gotten big! And...you're very fangy," He said noticing the sharp teeth in his mouth.

"I am 18 now uncle Murray. And my fangs came in when I was five."

"So why didn't you come back then?"

Dennis sighed and looked at his mother before shaking his head. "It doesn't matter, we're here now."

"Yeah, hey can I come with? I'll help you look for him."

"You just want to see Frank," Wayne said smirking and Murray rolled his eyes. "It's lonely here by myself. You both have your wives and stuff it's just me."

"Come on you get more tail then I do," Wayne joked.

"Ugh! Dad!" Willa and Winnie said covering their ears.

Dennis ignored them all. "I see no reason why you can't come."

"Aaaaalllll right! Let's do it up!" He yelled going to pack his stuff.


	7. Chapter 6

Dennis was separated from Winnie by Murray in the ride back to the airport, which was more than a little annoying to him, having wanted to talk to her some more, and it made the ride much longer in his mind. Still they got to the airport with little issues and a few people's jaws dropped as they walked in. Of course they must've looked a sight. A human, with 3 apparent vampires, 3 werewolves, and a mummy. While monsters were known about and accepted, there still wasn't generally this many different types together.

The flight to Germany was also uneventful, but the constant flying around had taken it's toll by the time they got there, Allison was complaining about feeling sick, and Dennis himself felt like he could sleep for a year. Johnny was dead on his feet, and even Mavis looked a little tired.

"We can sleep when we get to Uncle Franks," She said.

"But Mom! I'm tired now," Allison all but whined, stomping her foot. She was always cranky when she got tired.

"Mom, really, he lives like two hours out of the city," Dennis agreed stifling a yawn.

"Mavey, we've been flying nonstop for almost twenty four hours. Everyone's exhausted. Let's just get a hotel, sleep this off, and we'll go see him tomorrow. He's not going to go anywhere," Johnny said touching her arm. Dennis could see that she wanted to protest and get them there, but at one last look at her children and even Winnie and Willa who were clearly exhausted as well, she relented.

"Fine. But we're leaving first thing in the evening."

No one protested as they hailed a cab and drove to the nearest hotel. Checking in was a blur, and Dennis passed out the second his head hit the pillow. It felt like almost no time had passed before the phone was ringing for their wake up call. He was rolling over to answer it when he heard a sleepy answering howl to the ring. He froze and looked around. Somehow, in the blur of the night before, Winnie and he had ended up sharing a bed. He quietly answered the phone, and thanked them for the call before hanging up and relaxing back into the bed.

Winnie was still asleep, she'd woken up just enough to howl but passed back out immediately. Really, Dennis didn't know how he hadn't realized she was the one next to him. His shirt was off, the way it always was when he slept, and she was curled up against him. Her soft furry body pressed into his bare side. His heart was beating fast and hard as he gently placed his arm around her. She shifted in closer and he lightly pet her head his fingers rubbing her scalp.

He gladly would've laid like that for the rest of time but suddenly there was knocking on the door. "Time to get up," his dad called through the door, and Winnie finally opened her eyes and yawned stretching out. She looked up and blinked when she saw Dennis. "Huh... How did we end up sharing a bed?" She asked. He just shrugged. He couldn't seem to find his voice, and he really didn't know. There were two beds in the room and he wasn't sure which of them had been asleep first. After a moment she cleared her throat and sat up and he followed suit.

They were the last two out of the room and both Wayne and Mavis were on the other side of the door. Wayne had his arms folded and Mavis quirked an eyebrow at the two of them. Both clearly sniffed at their children before just walking away and for some reason, Dennis blushed, feeling awkward.

All throughout breakfast Murray kept giving him knowing looks and Johnny seemed to be smirking but it took until they were in the car for his brain to wake up enough to realize just what every adult had suspected happened and suddenly he was blushing again. Winnie noticed it and tilted her head at him but he just shook his own and looked out the window.

Frank lived in an old mansion in the middle of the forest, the driveway was overgrown, but the house and yard seemed fairly maintained. The cabs carrying the entire crew pulled up and everyone climbed out. Murray rushed up to the door and rang the bell repeatedly.

"I'm coming I'm coming!" Came Frank's loud gruff voice from inside. He opened the door and let out a roar of delight as he saw his old friends. "Murray! Wayne!" He practically tackled them both laughing excitedly.

"Fraank! Fraaank," Wayne was saying tapping his back and after a moment he let go.

"Sorry it's been a while. What brought you guys here."

"Is my dad with you?" Mavis asked and suddenly Frank noticed just who else was there. He ran over to hug Mavis and Johnny.

"Wow Dennis is that you? Wow you've gotten big and..." He stopped as Dennis smiled and he caught sight of his fangs. "And...fangy."

"Uncle Frank, please. Is my dad here?"

"Drac? No no I've not seen him since before he closed the hotel down. Griffin and Blobby are here though." He went to say more but Mavis made a distressed noise.

"Mavey. It's alright," Johnny said walking over and placing his hands on her shoulders.

"We're never going to find him," She said tears shining in her bright blue eyes.

"Come on, lets get you all inside," Frank said ushering everyone into the house.

"Eunice! We've got company."

"Who is it?" Her voice came from the other room.

"Come take a look."

She walked over and grinned when she saw everyone, but it faltered quickly when she saw Mavis was crying.

"Oh what's wrong?" She asked.

"My dad's vanished off the face of the earth and it's all my fault," Mavis half sobbed leaning into Johnny's side.

"Oh no it's not," Wayne said placing a clawed hand on her shoulder.

"Well... It kinda is," Frank said and there was a smack as Eunice hit his shoulder. "What? He never would've closed down the hotel if she hadn't left and..."

"Frank!" She said. "Shut it." She sent a pointed look at Mavis and he quickly quieted.

"Oh wow look who it is," a voice said and a floating pair of glasses was descending the stairs followed by a green goo. Blobby started making happy noises and jiggling in place. "What're you all doing here?" Griffin asked.

"They're looking for Drac," Eunice said.

"Do either of you have any idea where he is?" Dennis asked.

"Oh wow, Dennis you've-"

"Yes, yes I have fangs," He cut him off. "My little sister does too I get it please drop it. Do you know where Papa Drac is?"

"I uh, no I don't."

Blobby garbled something and Frank nodded.

"Yeah, have you tried Vlad's?"

"Dad would never go to Grandpa Vlad," Mavis said shaking her head.

"Well it wouldn't hurt to look."

"We've been all over the continent and even off it, Mom. It's worth it to try one more place," Dennis said softly.

Mavis rubbed her face and nodded. "Fine. Assuming he still lives in the same place I know where to go."

"Does this mean the hotel is opening again?" Eunice asked excitedly.

"I don't know..."

"Oh come on! Even if you don't find Drac, Monsters and humans alike loved that hotel. You can open it again. Why don't Wanda, Blobby, and I go back to the hotel and start fixing the place up and when you return with Drac we can have a proper reunion."

Mavis was quiet for a moment before she smiled. "That could be nice."


	8. Chapter 7

**((I know what you're thinking. But NO I am NOT dead. I'm hoping to start regularly updating this again. (Really I dunno that I ever regularly updated but you get the point lol) Thank you for your support and I love you all.))**

Dennis honestly wasn't sure just how much more he could take. His mother had become almost completely intolerable barking orders left and right worse than Aunt Eunice did. The flight and ride back to the hotel was terrible and she'd instantly wanted to leave again, though that was put on hold the second Allison threw up. The constant flying had done her in and she was more sick than she'd been in a very long while. Mavis had to slow down and take care of her.

Poor Allison was miserable, she had a fever, the chills, her entire little body was aching, and she couldn't keep anything down. Dennis obviously felt bad for his sister, but some small part of him was glad it happened. Not because she was sick, or anything, but just because it meant they had a chance to breathe. And he got more time with Winnie. Or...he would. If he wasn't tending to her while Winnie helped her family try to clean and repair the hotel for the reopening.

Mavis still wasn't fully convinced about it, but was allowing the restoration to take place if only to appease them all. She didn't really want to stay here, she wanted to go back to Santa Cruz and insisted repeatedly in the days they'd been back at the hotel that she was only so insistent to find Drac because she'd promised Dennis. She wasn't fooling anyone. Dennis knew that she just felt terrible that he'd closed the hotel because she'd left. She was just trying to make herself feel better again, like it wasn't all her fault.

It was late morning, and Dennis had just managed to help Allison fall asleep. He eyed her as he backed out of the room they'd set up for her and slowly closed it. He sighed as he leaned against the wall next to it and rubbed his eyes yawning.

"Tired?" a voice asked close to his ear and he jumped turning around to be face to face with Winnie, who was grinning, her sharp teeth glinting in the muted light. He relaxed immediately a grin finding his own lips.

"A bit," he admitted. "I've been taking care of Allison."

"How's she doing? Willa's very worried."

"She's getting better. She'll be fine in a day or two I think. Why hasn't Willa come to see her, Ally's been asking for her."

"She says she doesn't want to bother her or distract her."

Dennis laughed. "She needs a bit of distracting. She may be sick but she's not used to laying in bed constantly. She's going insane."

Winnie laughed as well. The sound was warm and smooth and sounded like music to Dennis's ears. "Well I'll let her know."

"How goes restoration?" He asked. "Is Mom being intolerable for you too?"

"Oh definitely. She wants everything to go back to exactly how it was before. It's like she's thinking the hotel being pristine will make Uncle Drac want to stay after you guys...go back home." Her smile twisted off just slightly and the pause just seemed so sad that it made Dennis's heart ache. He reached a hand out automatically and caressed her cheek.

"Hey," he said softly waiting until her blue eyes met his. "Even if we do go home...It's not going to be another thirteen years before we talk again." He let a small smile touch his lips as he stared into her eyes. "You won't get rid of me that easily." He brushed his thumb across her cheek and she leaned into his touch her eyes sliding closed for a minute before they opened again.

"Dennis," She said softly taking a step closer to him and suddenly it was warm and his heart was picking up speed.

"What?" He asked his voice just as soft as hers but she didn't seem to have anything to follow it up with. She was leaning closer to him and he was leaning in as well. His eyes seemed locked on hers and more sharply than ever he was remembering that flash of purple he'd seen in them as a baby. They were inches away...centimeters, his eyes were closing and so were hers he could feel her breath on his lips and...

"DENNY!"

Allison's voice shattered the moment and they both jumped apart as though they'd been caught doing something wrong. As soon as it registered Dennis felt anger and frustration flare through him at his sister. He looked at Winnie who he could tell was blushing under her fur and she swallowed.

"Um, I guess you should see what your sister wants?" She said her voice rough before she cleared it with a cough.

"Y..Yeah I guess," He agreed. He hesitated for a minute more but sighed. "Goodnight Winnie." Opening the door again he slid back in just to hear "Goodnight my Zing," very quietly from her as the door shut behind him again.


	9. Chapter 8

"You need to take the next left," Mavis told Johnny pointing it out. She was calmer than she'd been for the past four days, now that they were finally back on track looking for her father. She and Johnny had rented a large car after Ally stopped throwing up the night before but they waited until today to actually head out. She was better but still very weak. She and Willa stayed behind with Wanda, the other wolf pups, Eunice, and Blobby so she could rest; while Mavis, Johnny, Wayne, Griffin, Frank, Winnie, and Dennis headed towards Vlad's cave.

Dennis still couldn't really get over that. His great grandfather lived in a cave... Did he not know houses were a thing? But his mother insisted that he was old school and preferred caves to creature comforts. He was so distracted by the fact that at the very least he was about to meet his great grandfather that he didn't even notice that his hand was clasped in Winnie's until he went to rub his eyes and felt the extra weight. He looked down to see her furry paw gently resting against his their fingers laced together and a small smile flitted across his lips as he looked up at her.

She was staring out the window also apparently unaware of what was happening and he took the moment to just drink her in. She was so beautiful. The moonlight made her bright blue eyes shimmer like stars and her muzzle was so cute. He could tell she was day dreaming by the far off glaze and the slight opening of her lips showing the very tips of her sharp teeth. The fur on her face was soft and well groomed close set and smooth looking.

Without even realizing it he was squeezing her hand. She blinked a couple times and turned to look at him her eyes widening when she caught him staring and he felt himself blush. She smiled at that and squeezed his hand back before going back to look out the window. Dennis rubbed his cheeks with his free hand and turned away to notice Wayne eyeing him. He quirked an eyebrow at him and dropped his gaze to their hands. Dennis felt the butterflies churn inside his stomach but Wayne didn't say anything, just looked away as Mavis called "We're here!"

Dennis leaned over closer to Winnie and looked out the window. They were parked in front of the most intimidating looking cave he'd ever seen. The mouth was full of stalactites and stalagmites that looked like sharp pointed teeth. There was a mailbox out front with Vlad scrawled across one side in elegant script, and 666 in bright red letters on the other. It would've been comical to him if he wasn't actually a little afraid of what was about to happen. Almost as though she smelled his fear (and really she could have) Winnie nuzzled his cheek with her nose. "It's alright," She said softly as she released his hand and opened the door to step out.

Following after her Dennis took in the cave. His great grandfather was certainly...isolated out here. Would Papa Drac really come here? There was only one way to find out. Mavis lead the way to the cave and walked in. There wasn't a door but there was a short walk in before there was a chair that seemed to be carved from stone. There was a figure sitting in the dark who's eyes were glowing a bright blue.

Dennis's heart was in his throat as he looked him over. Could it be...The figure squinted at them and them and then his eyes widened and he stood.

"Holy rabies," He said in a feathery old voice walking into the light. It definitely wasn't Dracula. This man was significantly older with a shiny bald head and bushy white eyebrows. His ears were large and pointed and his face was square with a chin that protruded from his face and a long very hooked nose. "Mavis it's been many years since I've seen you. You were just a wee fanger."

"Hi Grandpa Vlad," Mavis replied hugging him back as he walked over and wrapped his arms around her. "I was just wondering is my Dad here?"

"Here? Of course he's here. Haven't been able to get rid of him in years," He said calling over his shoulder. "Drac! Get over here!"

"What Daddy," Came a familiar voice and out of the shadows walked another much more familiar figure. Drac blinked a few times as he looked over the group assembled there. "MAVIS! HONEY BAT!" He cried sprinting over and grabbing his daughter in a giant hug spinning them around a few times before he suddenly seemed to remember the terms they parted on and instantly released her taking a step back clearing his throat.

Mavis stood hard and fast for only a few seconds before she broke down crying and threw herself in her father's arms. "Oh Daddy," She sobbed holding him close. He held her back tears running down his own face.

"Mavey... Oh my little blood orange I've missed you so much."

After everyone watched for a few minutes Dennis cleared his throat and Drac slowly looked up After a moment of taking in his figure, bright blue eyes, and finally the mop of orange hair on top of his head his eyes lit up. "Dennis! Is that you? Holy Rabies you've gotten big." He released Mavis and rushed over to hug him.

"Hi Papa Drac." Drac stepped back and looked him over.

"My you've grown into a fine young man. Tall, strong and..." He paused as Dennis smiled. "And...Fanged..." He stood there for a long moment before turning to look at Mavis the hurt palpable on his face.

"Fanged? Of course he's fanged. He's a Dracula," Vlad was saying but no one seemed to be paying attention to him. Everyone was holding their breath watching it all unfold with Mavis and Dracula.

"Mavis...Why did you stay away then?"

"Because..." Whatever she was about to say however was interrupted by the loud sound of flapping. Everyone looked around to see hundreds of huge bat-like creatures flying towards the mouth of the cave.

"Ah Bela's back," Vlad said smiling and suddenly Drac froze realizing Johnny was there.

"Mavis you guys got to get out of here."

"What? Why?"

"If you want to save your husband you'll leave," He said.

"But I'm sure Grandpa..."

"Mavis I'm serious. They haven't changed at all. They're coming back from a night of stealing souls," He hissed.

Mavis blinked and looked over at Johnny fear finally showing on her face.

"What are you whispering about over there?" Vlad asked.

"Mavis was just saying they have to go."

"Go? But they just got here. Why don't they stay for dinner! I'm sure Bela's bringing some back."

"Oh thank you Grandpa but Really we have to get going..."

"Oh no I insist. I want to get to know my Great Vampson."

"Now I know where Drac gets his bad jokes," Frank whispered to Wayne, who snickered.

"What was that?" Vlad ask turning on them his eyes like daggers.

"NOTHING SIR!" Frank said flinching.

"That's what I thought."

"No really Grandpa but..." The rest of Mavis's sentence was cut off by the arrival of over fifty bat like creatures. They flew in laughing and landed on the ceiling one landing beside Vlad and handing him a large sack.

"Good hunt then Bela?" The man asked laughing and the bat-thing laughed and nodded before he froze and sniffed.

"I... smell...A HUMAN!" He shrieked and as if pulled by a string everyone turned to look at Johnny who was standing half hidden behind Frank as if he knew the place he was wasn't a welcoming one for him.

"...Hey..." He said half waving.

"Oh Mavis you brought a snack?" Vlad said starting forward but she stood in front of him.

"No! This is my Husband! Johnny!"

"You're husband? You married a human? You let your daughter marry a human? And half a half human kid?" Vlad asked turning on Drac. "Why don't you just put a stake in my heart."

Bela didn't give Drac a chance to answer, he was too busy snarling."A HUMAN IN THIS CAVE!" Suddenly it was pandemonium. The bat-things were flying around and roaring, Mavis was yelling, Drac was shouting, and Frank, Wayne, and Murray were surrounding Johnny to protect him.

Dennis cried out as one suddenly grabbed his hair and pulled hard but he didn't need to react, before he could even blink Winnie was on the bat that grabbed him tearing into his arm with a vicious almost feral snarl. It would have been terrifying but really, Dennis couldn't imagine being more attracted to her than he was at that moment.

And then Mavis was grabbing his arm, and Drac grabbed Winnie's and they were running. The bat-things chased them out as they all slammed back in the cars and peeled out of there rocks skidding behind them and leaving the cave, the angry bat-things, and Vlad in the dust.

Dennis looked up at Winnie who was in the seat beside him, panting and grinned before reaching up to wipe a drip of bat blood off her lips. "Thank you...My Zing," He whispered. Her bright blue eyes lit up and she smiled showing her still blood soaked teeth.


	10. Chapter 9

**((Sorry Guys! Inktober took over my life, and then my birthday and I got sick for the last few weeks. But I'm back!... Again!))**

They were still panting as the car screeched into the hotel driveway and when the doors opened they all practically fell out on top of each other, groaning.

"Well...that could've got better," Dennis said, brushing off his shirt and trying to fix his hair. Winnie fixed her dress and smiled reaching up and moving his hands out of the way fixing it for him.

"What's your Grandpa's problem Mavis?" Johnny asked as he rubbed his shoulder.

"My father is known for his hatred of humans, he would've stolen everyone's soul if we were there another minute," Drac said the only one seeming relatively unfazed.

Dennis looked at him. "What about you Papa?" He asked quietly. So much of his early childhood he remembered his grandpa fondly, but thinking about it, a lot of their time together seemed to be spent trying to make him into a vampire.

"What?" Drac asked, confused.

"Papa Drac...Do you hate Humans too?"

The atmosphere was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Everyone's eyes were on Dracula and he seemed frozen for a minute before he shook his head.

"No Dennis. I don't hate humans. I let your mother marry your father did I not?"

"Then why was so much of my the time we had together spent trying to turn me into a monster like you?" He asked.

"I just... I wanted you to..."

"Be like you?"

He sighed and nodded. "At first...and then I wanted you all to stay but... I... Dennis I was wrong. I realized after you left...You were perfect just the way you are. And I never should have tried to change you. Once I realized for sure you weren't coming back I couldn't stand living in this place with you you all... I missed you... Dennis, Mavis... Even Johnny and his backpack... And I'd messed it all up. I'm sorry."

Dennis looked at him and then at his mother who bit her lip.

"I'm sorry too Daddy... I left because I was livid...I was so upset that you'd put Dennis in danger and you'd had such an obsession with turning him into a monster. I left because I wanted him to be safe. And then he got his fangs. The night of his fifth birthday." She trailed off.

"Why didn't you come back Mavey?"

"Dad, I love you... I do but you've been treating me like a child my whole life. I needed some space, some room to breathe and grow. I was a parent but you still acted like I was five. You second guessed all my decisions and went behind my back and I felt like I couldn't make a decision about my own child. After a while that too faded and then it was just me not liking to admit that..." She sighed softly. "That...I was wrong. I know you were only trying to look out for me, that you did it all because you cared." She looked up at him, tears shining in her bright blue eyes. "I'm sorry Daddy."

Drac's eyes grew big and he rushed over giving his daughter a huge hug. "It's okay my little Blood Orange. I'm sorry too. I just wanted you safe and home. I didn't want to lose you. I'm sorry that I went too far."

Dennis smiled a bit. "We should head inside," He said as the sun started to peek over the horizon and Mavis and Dracula broke apart.

They crept in, expecting it to be quiet since it was so late, only to be shocked as there was the howl of many wolf pups and they all crowded around him sniffing excitedly.

"Okay okay hey hey! Alright! Enough. Wayne I see you've added to your brood," He said as he growled and got them all to sit. "Back to your mother." They ran off howling and growling.

Allison wandered over to Dennis and hugged him still a little shakey but looking much better. "Denny, is that him?" She asked her eyes wide and Drac looked over smiling.

"And who's this little cutie."

She smiled up at him. "I'm Allison! I'm Dennis's little sister!"

Drac took in her black hair with the red streak and brown eyes and obviously fanged mouth and smiled a bit painfully. "Why hello there. I'm Dracula...I'm your vampa."

"...Vampa?" She asked tilting her head.

"Vampire Grandpa come on Honey Bat, that was obvious," He said rather deadpan before blinking in shock as she rushed forward to hug him. He laughed and hugged her back looking up at Mavis. "She's so much like you."

After another hour of reintroductions and introductions, thanks to the wolf pups mainly, they were all settled in what used to be the ballroom.

"So... What're we doing here?" Dracula asked looking around at them all.

"I promised Dennis for his 18th birthday we would come see you," Mavis informed him. "I never thought you'd close the hotel... What've you been doing the last 13 years?"

"Well a few years after you left, I just couldn't...do it. I built this place for you, Mavey. To keep you safe. Without you in it no matter how many guests we had it always felt so empty. I stopped taking care of it anyway so I closed it down. I drifted for a bit but soon ended up at your Gramp's and I just stayed there taking care of him and the cave and his bat cronies."

"Why'd you cut us all out?" Frank asked.

Drac shrugged. "I didn't know how to be around anyone anymore. I was too...lost in my own head I suppose."

"Well...What now?" Dennis asked. "It doesn't seem like Great Grandpa Vlad is going to want to let you back after he found out about me and Dad. So what will you do?"

Drac shrugged. "I'll figure it out, I'm sure."

"Well... You could always reopen the hotel," Griffin suggested his glasses widening as he looked at Drac.

"What? No way," He said shaking his head. "No way no how."

"Why not?"

"It it's been years! This place is in total disrepair there's no way I could fix it up and I don't know that I could run it again."

"Come on man!" Frank said. "We all miss this place."

"Yeah, and who said you'd be fixing it up by yourself," Murray added.

"We're all here Drac, we can all help," Wayne said.

"Plus, We already started," Dennis informed him.

"You have? But why?"

"This place was such a hot spot, a place to be. It was so grand and full of life. I remember it all so well and I was only 5 when we left."

"Daddy this place was your life. I want you to have that again, for all of monster-kind and mankind to have that again," Mavis said softly. "So we've been picking up, cleaning up. We want to open it again."

Drac stared at her. "You do?"

She swallowed. "I still won't be living here Dad..." His slightly hopeful face fell. "But we will be visiting much more often."

A furry paw was suddenly on Dennis's hand and squeezing it. He turned to look at Winnie who seemed very distressed with the idea of them leaving. He felt his own heart give a squeeze and patted her paw reassuringly. He'd figure something out.

"Okay," Drac's voice pulled him from his thoughts. "Alright. Let's reopen the hotel."


End file.
